| Abstract [eng] |
While existing academic literature provides a strong theoretical basis for considering celebrities as proactive public diplomacy actors and for assessing their influence, most of the research to date has focused on celebrities' activities targeting foreign audiences, without assessing the new public diplomacy they conduct domestically. In the light of this identified problem, the main aim of this thesis was to assess the role of celebrities as the new public diplomacy actors, their influence for the domestic audience, and its implications for the state’s public diplomacy abroad. To achieve the main objective, the object of the research was chosen to be the initiatives carried out by the Lithuanian public figures Andrius Tapinas, Jonas Ohmanas and Olegas Šurajevas, which were intended to draw the attention of the Lithuanian public to the war in Ukraine and to crowdfund for aid to this country. To achieve the main aim of this paper, the following research objectives were completed: 1) Develop a theoretical model based on the assumptions of the new public diplomacy and E. Huijgh's theory of domestic public diplomacy to assess the initiatives; 2) Assess whether Tapinas, Ohmanas and Šurajevas can be considered celebrities; 3) Evaluate whether Tapinas, Ohmanas and Šurajevas were engaged in domestic public diplomacy by assessing if their activities were in the public interest of Lithuania and whether they had the support of the Lithuanian authorities; 4) Assess the involvement of Tapinas, Ohmanas and Šurajevas in the new public diplomacy by raising awareness of the war in Ukraine and raising funds for this country; 5) Assess the significance of the domestic initiatives carried out by Tapinas, Ohmanas and Šurajevas for Lithuanian public diplomacy abroad. By the tasks carried out, the following hypotheses were confirmed: 1)Given that Tapinas, Ohmanas and Šurajevas are among the most influential public figures in Lithuania, they could be considered Lithuanian celebrities; 2)The initiatives of Tapinas, Ohmanas and Šurajevas served Lithuania's public interests and had the support of the Lithuanian government, thus they engaged in public diplomacy; 3)Tapinas, Ohmanas and Šurajevas have successfully contributed to informing the Lithuanian public about the war in Ukraine, and their initiatives have had a significant impact on raising funds to provide aid to Ukraine; 4)The initiatives of these public figures contributed to Lithuania's public diplomacy abroad. This study proved that the celebrities contributed to the Lithuanian public's knowledge of the war in Ukraine and influenced the decision of Lithuanians to donate to Ukraine. The amount of the influence varied from one celebrity to the other and depended mainly on the celebrities' personality traits, the level of communication, and the work they had done. It also revealed that the greatest influence of celebrities was done to people who follow them on social networks. Finally, the initiatives carried out have led to more Ukrainians trusting Lithuanians, naming of a street in the Ukrainian city of Dergachi after Lithuania, Turkey's decision to hand over the Bayraktar drone to Ukraine free of charge, and the decision by Poland to start crowdfunding as well. This thesis was the first successful case study demonstrating the role and influence of celebrities as the new public diplomacy actors at home. As thesis confirmed the assumptions of domestic public diplomacy and refined the theory by distinguishing celebrities from the rest of public, it is of theoretical and empirical importance. Future work on this topic is suggested and recommended to: - Follow the idea that celebrities in domestic public diplomacy play a mediating role between the national government and the rest of the public; and - Investigate the role of celebrities within other countries and to compare these cases with the case of the success of domestic public diplomacy in Lithuania presented in this paper. |
